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SCHOOL BOARD ACTION REPORT DATE: December 11, 2019 FROM: Denise Juneau, Superintendent LEAD STAFF: Emily Harrison / Project Manager for Secondary Revisioning /

ELHarrison@seattleschools.org; Caleb Perkins / Director of College and Career Readiness / CBPerkins@seattleschools.org / Kyle Kinoshita / Executive Director of Curriculum, Assessment, and Instruction / KDKinoshita@seattleschools.org/ Diane DeBacker/ Chief Academic Officer/ dmdebacker@seattleschools.org

For Introduction: January 9, 2019 For Action: January 23, 2019February 27, 2019

1. TITLE Amendment to Board Policy No. 2024, Online Learning; Repeal of Board Policy No. C16.00, Acceptance of Correspondence or College Courses for High School Credit 2. PURPOSE This Board Action Report makes edits to and renames Board Policy No. 2024, Online Learning. It also repeals Board Policy No. C16.00, Acceptance of Correspondence or College Courses for High School Credit. Relevant material from the repealed Board Policy No. C16.00 would be incorporated into a revised 2024SP. The changes reflect recommendations from the High School Policy Work Group and Seattle Public Schools’ Internal Auditors. 3. RECOMMENDED MOTION I move that the School Board amend Board Policy No. 2024, Online Learning, as attached to the Board Action Report, and that the School Board repeal Board Policy No. C16.00, Acceptance of Correspondence or College Courses for High School Credit, also attached to the Board Action Report. If the motion is approved, the changes would be effective for the 2019-20summer term of the 2018-19 school year. 4. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

a. Background Introduction Superintendent Procedure 2024SP, Online Learning, outlines the manner in which Seattle Public Schools allows students to take courses for high school credit via online learning opportunities. During the 2017-18 School Year, Seattle Public Schools’ Internal Auditors audited online learning at a selection of high schools across the district, and reviewed Superintendent Procedure 2024SP, and determined that the procedure should be clearer to promote consistency between schools. Specifically, they raised a concern that there was confusion about which forms and permissions were required for taking online courses for high school credit, and shared that concern with the Department of College and Career

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Readiness (CCR). CCR acknowledged their concerns, and decided to bring the issue to the High School Policy Work Group. The High School Policy Work Group, consisting of high school principals, counselors, and academic intervention specialists, as well as central office staff, examined the School Board Policy and Superintendent Procedure for Online Learning, and agreed that it was confusing, but also noted that it was out of date, and not in line with current practices at high schools. It was also inequitable in a number of ways. Work group members, with feedback from central staff and principals, discussed revisions at length, and made the following recommendations: 1. Rename Board Policy 2024 and Superintendent Procedure 2024SP from “Online

Learning” to “Out-of-District Credits and Credit Recovery.” 2. Divide 2024SP into two sections:

a. Section 1: Out-of-District Credits for First Time Credit b. Section 2: Credit Recovery.

3. Make all out-of-district credits for first time credit appear on high school transcripts as pass/no pass, rather than a letter grade.

4. Create a decision tree to determine when principals/school administrators should approve students’ requests to take out-of-district credits for first time credit.

5. Allow out-of-district credits for high school students only, not middle school students.

6. Limit students to four out-of-district online credits for first time credit, instead of eight.

7. Repeal Board Policy C16.00, Acceptance of Correspondence or College Courses for High School Credit, and incorporate all relevant information into section 1 of 2024SP.

In response to these recommendations, it is proposed that Board Policy No. C16.00 be repealed and that Board Policy No. 2024 be amended as attached to this Board Action Report. A revised version of Superintendent Procedure 2024 SP is also provided for the Board’s reference. Rationale for Revisions 1. The High School Policy Work Group determined that it was important to rename the

policy and the procedure because “Online Learning” does not encompass all of the ways in which students currently access the out-of-district courses and credit recovery courses referred to in the procedure. While many students elect to take out-of-district courses for first time credit online, others choose to take those courses at colleges and universities, at private high schools, and at high schools in other nearby school districts. And, though many students do participate in online credit recovery, students are also able to access credit recovery through summer school offerings. The revised policy and procedure outline the state and district guidelines for taking online classes, but also include guidelines on all of the other manners in which students may take out-of-district and credit recovery classes.

2. In order to address the confusion that the Internal Auditors identified around what permission is required to take these courses, the High School Policy Work Group advised that the best course of action was to divide the Superintendent Procedure into two sections. Section 1 applies to out-of-district courses for first time credit only, and

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students must always seek prior permission by filling out an Equivalency of Study Form. Section 2 applies to credit recovery only, and students do not need to fill out an Equivalency of Study Form in order to access credit recovery.

3. Currently, when a student takes an out-of-district course, the letter grade the student receives is included in the student’s high school transcript and grade point average (GPA). The High School Policy Work Group was concerned that it was inequitable to allow these out-of-district courses to impact GPA, because students whose families can afford out-of-district courses can “shop around” for the easiest course in a particular subject, and use it to raise their GPA. Students whose families cannot afford to pay for out-of-district courses do not have the same option to raise their GPAs. Given that, the work group advised that it would be more equitable to make out-of-district courses appear on transcripts as pass/no pass, so that GPA will not be impacted.

4. Under the current Superintendent Procedure, principals have wide discretion to determine whether or not to approve a student’s request for out-of-district courses. In practice, some principals almost never give their approval, while other principals are much more accepting of out-of-district courses. This is inequitable, because it means that students in different high schools have different levels of access to out-of-district courses. In order to minimize this inequity, the High School Policy Work Group created a decision tree, incorporated into the revised Superintendent Procedure, to guide principals on when to approve out-of-district course requests. They should only approve the request if the student needs the course to graduate, and cannot take the course at his or her school, or if the student needs the course in order to get on track to access college preparatory courses during junior or senior year.

5. The High School Policy Work Group determined that middle school students should not be allowed to take out-of-district courses for high school credit. It is inappropriate for each middle school student’s principal to determine individually what out-of-district credits a student should be approved to take, when the credits will be applying to a high school that the principal is not in charge of. Furthermore, principals in the High School Policy Work Group flagged concerns that middle school students are currently taking out-of-district math classes so that they can take more advanced math classes in high school. This is problematic, given that out-of-district classes often do not prepare them adequately for the more advanced high school courses. Board Policy No. 2420 also addresses out-of-district high school credits for middle school students. College and Career Readiness is introducing a separate Board Action Report to recommend revisions to that policy, to ensure that there is no discrepancy between the language in 2024SP and Board Policy No.2420.

6. Currently, students are allowed to take up to eight online credits. Under the revised procedure, students will be limited to four out-of-district online credits, but will still be able to take up to eight online credits for credit recovery. High school principals who reviewed the revised procedure were concerned that eight out-of-district online credits was too many, but found four credits to be reasonable, as it allows a student to take a 0.5 credit course each semester. Exceptions will be considered for students facing extenuating circumstances, long term illness for example.

7. C16.00 was last revised in 2007, and is out of date, but still contains relevant guidelines regarding which educational institutions Seattle Public Schools should accept as out-of-district providers of high school credits. Those guidelines have been incorporated into the revised 2024SP, so C16.00 can be repealed.

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b. Alternatives

The main alternative is to respond, in a more limited way, to the internal audit by clarifying that students need to fill out the Equivalency of Study Form to take out-of-district credits, but not when they will be taking in district credit recovery courses. This is not recommended, because the High School Policy Work Group has carefully considered the recommended revisions, and the Department of College and Career Readiness has vetted the revisions with high school principals, directors of schools P-12, the chief academic officer, the Department of Racial Equity and Advancement, and the C&I Policy Committee. There is widespread agreement these revisions make 2024SP more equitable, more clear, and more in line with the realities of how students are accessing out-of-district courses for first time credit and credit recovery courses.

c. Research The internal auditors completed audits of online learning at Franklin High School, Cleveland High School, Center School, and Rainier Beach High School during the 2017-18 school year. Their findings prompted the Department of College and Career Readiness to engage the High School Policy Work Group to look deeply into 2024SP. As part of the process of revisioning 2024SP, work group representatives researched out-of-district and credit retrieval procedures at other districts and used their research to inform the revisions recommended by the group. Moving forward, the Department of College and Career Readiness is working with the Department of Technology Services to collect and analyze available data on online course usage across the district. We will use that data to determine which online learning providers and subjects are most popular with our students and schools and look into the feasibility of auditing individual courses to ensure that they meet high standards. The ultimate goal would be providing students and families with a list of SPS approved online courses. Please note that this work would be a major endeavor, with a two-three year timeline, and is subject to funding availability.

5. FISCAL IMPACT/REVENUE SOURCE There is no fiscal impact to this action. However, there would be a fiscal impact in the future if we decided to move forward with an audit of specific online courses. The revenue source for this motion is n/a. Expenditure: One-time Annual Multi-Year N/A Revenue: One-time Annual Multi-Year N/A 6. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT With guidance from the District’s Community Engagement tool, this action was determined to merit the following tier of community engagement:

Not applicable

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Tier 1: Inform

Tier 2: Consult/Involve

Tier 3: Collaborate

We determined that this action merited Tier 3 engagement with school level staff. In order to create the revised Superintendent Procedure 2024SP, the Department of College and Career Readiness collaborated with the High School Policy Work Group, comprised of a small group of high school principals, school counselors. academic intervention specialists, and central staff members. We also shared draft versions of the procedure with the entire cadre of high school principals, received feedback from some of those principals, and incorporated that feedback into the procedure. 7. EQUITY ANALYSIS College and Career Readiness staff met with staff from the Department of Racial Equity and Advancement to share proposed changes and ask for support with analyzing the proposed changes using the Racial Equity Analysis tool. Following that meeting, CCR staff completed the racial equity analysis. The analysis confirmed that the High School Policy Work Group approached the revisions with an equity lens, and recommended revisions that would lead to more equitable outcomes for students. As described above, under the current procedure, when a student takes an out-of-district course, the letter grade the student receives counts towards his or her GPA. The student can “shop around” for a course that is known to be easy, instead of taking the course through SPS. This is inequitable, because students who cannot afford to pay for out-of-district courses do not have this option for boosting their GPAs. In the revised procedure, out-of-district courses would not be used for GPA calculations, and this would level the playing field. Also, under the current procedure, principals have wide discretion about which out-of-district courses to approve, if any. As a result, students at some schools can access many out-of-district courses, while students at other schools must take all courses at their home school. This is inequitable. The High School Policy Work Group created the decision tree to guide principals on when to approve requests for out-of-district courses, and to standardize the decision making process across the district. 8. STUDENT BENEFIT The revisions we are recommending will benefit students in several ways. First, the revised procedure provides students with a clear understanding of the district guidelines for taking out-of-district credits and credit recovery courses. Second, this will benefit less wealthy students because, as described above, it will level the playing field. They will not have to compete for scholarships or college admissions with students who may have inflated their GPAs with out-of-district courses. And finally, it will benefit students because it will ensure that no matter which school they attend, their requests to take out-of-district courses will be evaluated using the same decision-making process.

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9. WHY BOARD ACTION IS NECESSARY

Amount of contract initial value or contract amendment exceeds $250,000 (Policy No. 6220)

Amount of grant exceeds $250,000 in a single fiscal year (Policy No. 6114)

Adopting, amending, or repealing a Board policy

Formally accepting the completion of a public works project and closing out the contract

Legal requirement for the School Board to take action on this matter

Board Policy No. _____, [TITLE], provides the Board shall approve this item

Other: _____________________________________________________________________ 10. POLICY IMPLICATION

• Board Policy No. 2024 and Superintendent Procedure 2024SP, Online Learning, will be revised.

• Board Policy No. C16.00, Acceptance of Correspondence or College Courses for High School Credit, will be repealed.

• Board Policy No. 2420, High School Grade and Credit Marking Policy, will need to be revised. There is a reference to middle school students taking out-of-district online classes for high school credit, and that will need to be removed. A BAR to revise Board Policy No. 2420 is being introduced in conjunction with this BAR.

11. BOARD COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION This motion was discussed at the C&I Committee meeting on December 11, 2018. The Committee reviewed the motion and moved the item forward for consideration by the full Board. College and Career Readiness staff updated the Policy between introduction and action to address questions and concerns raised by directors at the Board Meeting on January 9, 2019. 12. TIMELINE FOR IMPLEMENTATION Upon approval of this motion, College and Career Readiness will work with the Department of Communications to provide a summary of all changes to school staff, families, and students. Mmiddle and high school principals will be notified of changes through the School Leader Communicator, and directed to use the decision tree in Superintendent Procedure 2024SP when considering requests for out-of-district credits. Sand school counselors will be notified by email. A summary of the changes will be posted to the district website, and a summary will also be emailed to all families of middle and high school students, so that they may communicate the change to their students. The revised Board Policy No. 2024 and Superintendent Procedure 2024SP will be posted to the SPS School Board website for implementation in the 2019-20summer term of the 2018-19 school year.

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13. ATTACHMENTS

• Board Policy No. 2024, Out-of-district Credits and Credit Recovery – (Cclean (for approvalwith changes since Intro noted in tracked changes- for approval)

• Board Policy No. 2024, Online Learning – redline (for reference) • Superintendent Procedure No. 2024SP, Out-of-district Credits and Credit Recovery –

clean (for reference) • Superintendent Procedure No. 2024SP, Online Learning – original (for reference)

o Because the procedure was reconfigured and substantially revised, a redlined version is not provided.

• Board Policy No. C16.00, Acceptance of Correspondence or College Courses for High School Credit – original (for repeal)

OUT-OF-DISTRICT CREDITS AND CREDIT

RECOVERY

Policy No. 2024

Date

Page 1 of 21

It is the policy of the Seattle School Board that a variety of learning options, including out-of-district courses and credit recovery courses, be available to students. The Board recognizes that students may need to take out-of-district high school courses if they are not able to enroll in particular courses at their high school. The Board also recognizes that students may need to enroll in credit recovery courses in order to earn credits in courses that they have attempted unsuccessfully. The purpose of this policy and the corresponding superintendent procedure is to offer students a variety of options for earning credits while also ensuring that the options are rigorous and equally accessible to all students in the district. Therefore, the Board supports a range of out-of-district and credit recovery opportunities, and directs the Superintendent to provide information to parents, students, and staff regarding these options and the guidelines for participation. The Superintendent or designee will develop procedures to implement this policy. The procedures will include, but will not be limited to, a description of student access to out-of-district and credit recovery courses, student eligibility criteria, the types of courses available to students, methods the district will use to support student success, payment of course fees and other costs, and granting of course credit. In-district courses are defined as courses offered by Seattle Public Schools to actively enrolled students. This includes state and/or district approved dual credit programs such as Running Start and College in the High School. All other courses are considered 0ut-of-district. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction approves and/or accredits out-of-district providers. Seattle Public Schools will regularly review these providers to ensure that only credits earned through currently approved/accredited providers will be considered for addition to student official transcripts, per Superintendent Procedure 2024. Adopted: December 2011 Revised: Date Cross Reference: Policy Nos. 2022; 2420; 2255 Related Superintendent Procedure: 2024SP Previous Policies: C57.00; C16.00 Legal References: RCW 28A.225 Compulsory School Attendance and Admission; RCW 28A.250

Online Learning; RCW 28A.230.090 High school graduation requirements or equivalencies—High school and beyond plans—Career and college ready graduation requirements and waivers—Reevaluation of graduation requirements—Language requirements—Credit for courses taken before attending high school—Postsecondary credit equivalencies; RCW 28A.320.035 Contracting out – Board’s powers and duties – Goods and services; RCW 28A.150.220 Basic Education – Minimum instructional requirements – Program accessibility – Rules ; WAC 180-51 High School Graduation Requirements; WAC 392121-182 Alternative learning experience requirements; WAC 392-121-188 Instruction provided under contract; WAC 392-410-310 Equivalency course of study – Credit for correspondence courses, electronically mediated courses, and college courses; WAC 392-502 Online Learning; RCW 28A.150.305 Alternative educational service providers – Student eligibility; RCW 28A.232.010 Alternative learning experience courses—Generally—Definitions—Rules—Reports Board Policy No. 2024 Page 1 of 1 Management Resources: Policy News, December 2009

ONLINE LEARNING OUT-OF-DISTRICT

CREDITS AND CREDIT RECOVERY

Policy No. 2024

DateDecember 7, 2011

Page 1 of 212

It is the policy of the Seattle School Board that a variety of learning options, including out-of-district courses and credit recovery coursesonline courses and programs, are critical for 21st Century learners be available to students. The Board recognizes that students may need to take out-of-district high school courses if they are not able to enroll in particular courses at their high school. the online learning environment provides students with unique opportunities to become self-disciplined learners with life-long learning skills. Further, the Board believes that online learning provides broad opportunities for students to access curriculum and specialized courses in a flexible learning environment that might not otherwise be available. The Board also recognizes that students may need to enroll in credit recovery courses in order to earn credits in courses that they have attempted unsuccessfully. The purpose of this policy and the corresponding superintendent procedure is to offer students a variety of options for earning credits while also ensuring that the options are rigorous and equally accessible to all students in the district. Therefore, the Board supports a range of online learningout-of-district and credit recovery opportunities, and opportunities that are equally accessible to all students in the school district. The Board directs the Ssuperintendent to provide information to parents, students, and staff regarding these options online learning options and the guidelines for participation. The Superintendent or designee will develop procedures to implement this policy. The procedures will include, but will not be limited to, a description of student access to online learning courses/programsout-of-district and credit recovery courses, student eligibility criteria, the types of online courses available to students, methods the district will use to support student success, payment of course fees and other costs, and granting of course credit and conditions under which no credit will be awarded. In-district courses are defined as courses offered by Seattle Public Schools to actively enrolled students. This includes state and/or district approved dual credit programs such as Running Start and College in the High School. All other courses are considered 0ut-of-district. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction approves and/or accredits out-of-district providers. Seattle Public Schools will regularly review these providers to ensure that only credits earned through currently approved/accredited providers will be considered for addition to student official transcripts, per Superintendent Procedure 2024.

Adopted: December 2011 Revised: Date Cross Reference: Policy Nos. 2022; 2420; 2255; 2410; D130.00 Related Superintendent Procedure: 2024SP Previous Policies: C57.00; C16.00 Legal References: RCW 28A.225 Compulsory School Attendance and Admission; RCW 28A.250 Online Learning; RCW 28A.230.090 High school graduation requirements or equivalencies—High school and beyond plans—Career and college ready graduation requirements and waivers—Reevaluation of graduation requirements—Language requirements—Credit for courses taken before attending high school—Postsecondary credit equivalenciesHigh School graduation requirements or equivalencies – Reevaluation of graduation requirements – Review and authorization of proposed changes – Credit for courses taken before attending high school – Postsecondary credit equivalencies; RCW 28A.320.035 Contracting out – Board’s powers and duties – Goods and services; RCW 28A.150.262 Defining full-time equivalent student – Students receiving instruction through alternative learning experience online programs – Requirements – Rules; RCW 28A.150.220 Basic Education – Minimum instructional requirements – Program accessibility – Rules (Effective September 1, 2011); WAC 180-51 High School Graduation Requirements; WAC 392121-182 Alternative learning experience requirements; WAC 392-121-188 Instruction provided under contract; WAC 392-410-310 Equivalency course of study – Credit for correspondence courses, electronically mediated courses, and college courses; WAC 392-502 Online Learning; RCW 28A.150.305 Alternative educational service providers – Student eligibility; RCW 28A.232.010 Alternative learning experience courses—Generally—Definitions—Rules—Reports Board Policy No. 2024 Page 1 of 12 Management Resources: Policy News, December 2009

Board Policy No. 2024 Page 2 of 2

Superintendent Procedure 2024SP Out-of-District Credits and Credit Recovery Approved by: Date: I. Out-of-District Credits for First Time Credit

A. Conditions

Section I of this procedure outlines the process by which credit to fulfill graduation requirements will be granted for student learning that occurs outside of Seattle Public Schools for students actively enrolled in Seattle Public Schools. Out-of-District courses include courses taken through private schools, alternative learning sites, OSPI approved Online Digital Learning providers, postsecondary programs, or other educational activities and opportunities. Credit toward high school graduation may be granted for learning experiences outside Seattle Public Schools for first time credit from an accredited institution under the following conditions:

• Approval for credit has been obtained from student’s school administrator prior to enrollment and/or participation in the equivalency course of study.

• The learning experience meets OSPI standards: (http://www.k12.wa.us/CurriculumInstruct/default.aspx).

• The letter grade earned will not be posted to the Seattle Public Schools transcript. Instead, student will receive a “P” for passing or an “N” for not passing, which will be posted to the Seattle Public Schools transcript.

• Families who wish to partially enroll their children in programs or courses offered through another school district must meet with enrollment services and complete the inter-district enrollment process. Students may not exceed the maximum FTE allowed by OSPI.

• Seattle Public Schools is not responsible for NCAA Clearinghouse information for courses taken outside of Seattle Public Schools’ oversight. Not all courses meet NCAA standards. It is up to each family to determine whether or not a particular course meets NCAA standards.

• Seattle Public Schools does not guarantee that postsecondary institutions will recognize or accept out-of-district courses when evaluating student applications to those institutions. It is up to each family to determine whether or not any course meets the standards for postsecondary institutions of interest to the student.

• Seattle Public Schools is not responsible for costs or fees. In special circumstances, a school may pay for costs and fees if funding is available, pending approval by Curriculum, Assessment, and Instruction.

B. Process • Families must complete the Equivalency of Study for First Time Credit Form and

provide the form and course information to the student’s school administrator prior to taking the course.

• Administrator will evaluate the course based on the Decision Tree for Outside Credits, (per subsection D below).

• Administrator will inform the student/family of the decision in a timely manner. o If the request is approved, the student will complete the course, then submit

a sealed official transcript to his/her school for addition to the Seattle Public

Schools transcript. Note that the credit will be recorded as pass/no pass, not as a letter grade.

o If the request is not approved, the student may still take the course, but credit for the course will not be issued on the Seattle Public Schools transcript. The student may choose to independently submit the out-of-district credit to colleges or programs.

C. Limitations Students may take no more than four out-of-district online learning credits towards graduation purposes while enrolled in Seattle Public Schools high schools. If there are extenuating circumstances, schools may appeal to Curriculum, Assessment, and Instruction for permission to allow a student to apply additional online credits towards graduation.

D. Decision Tree for Outside Credits

Principals must answer the following questions when deciding whether or not to allow students to take outside courses for high school credit:

1. Is the student a middle school student or high school student? • Middle school students may not take outside courses for high school credit.

Students entering 9th grade are considered high school students when their academic records are transferred to their high school. If the student is in high school, proceed to the next question. If the student is not in high school, deny the request.

2. What institution is providing the course? • Courses must be taught by one of the following:

o OSPI approved online course provider; o Accredited community college, technical college, or university in

Washington State; o Approved private school in Washington State. All private schools in

Washington must be approved in order to operate, so any private school where a student might take a course is approved;

o High school or online school in a school district in Washington State.

• If the course is provided by one of the above institutions, proceed to the next question. If not, deny the request.

3. Does the course meet a graduation requirement for the student? • If the course meets a graduation requirement, proceed to the next question.

If the student cannot apply this course towards graduation, deny the request. 4. Does the student’s school offer this course, and is there room in the class for the

student to register? • If the course is not offered and/or there is no room in the class, approve the

request. If the course is offered at the school and the student can register, proceed to the next question.

5. Would taking the requested course help the student get on track to access college preparatory classes such as AP, IB, or the equivalent during the student’s junior or senior year of high school?

• If the course would help the student get on track to access college preparatory courses, approve the request. If not, deny the request.

o Examples of how to answer this question: Approve the request if the student failed Algebra 1A as a

first semester freshman, retook and passed it second semester, and wants to take Algebra 1B out-of-district over the summer, in order to take Geometry sophomore year, Algebra 2 junior year, and AP Calculus senior year.

Deny the request if the student is already enrolled in grade level courses, and will be able to access AP, IB, and equivalent courses during junior or senior year without taking the requested out-of-district course.

E. Exceptions • Exceptions to this procedure may apply to students with individual education plans

and/or 504 supports. Please see procedures 2161SP and 2162SP for more information. • Participation in a state or federal education program, e.g. Upward Bound, does not

require approval via the Equivalency of Study for First Time Credit Form.

II – Credit Recovery

Credit recovery is a course-specific, skill-based, extended learning opportunity for students who have previously been unsuccessful in mastering the content or skills required to receive course credit or earn promotion. The primary purpose of this procedure is to address the needs of students who have failed courses needed for their graduation. The Superintendent is authorized to develop a program through which students may recover credits, in compliance with Washington State regulations.

Students should enroll in credit recovery courses supervised by Seattle Public Schools. If there are extenuating circumstances preventing students from accessing credit recovery through Seattle Public Schools, they may be granted permission to enroll in out-of-district credit recovery, per subsection II(I) of this procedure.

A. Student Eligibility

Students may be eligible for credit recovery if they meet the following criteria:

• The student’s parent or legal guardian gives written consent for the student to enroll in the proposed credit recovery course. Parents/guardians should be informed that not all postsecondary institutions will accept credit recovery courses for credit and that the NCAA Clearinghouse will not accept some credit recovery courses for credit.

• The student has previously taken an initial, regular section of the proposed course and received an E or no credit.

• If the credit recovery course is an online course, the student has earned fewer than eight online credit recovery credits. Students may take no more than eight online credit recovery credits towards graduation purposes while enrolled in Seattle Public Schools high schools.

B. Credit Recovery Options

Seattle Public Schools will offer a variety of credit recovery options. Credit recovery will be delivered by a certified teacher.

Credit recovery may be delivered as follows:

• Credit recovery may be delivered through summer school offerings. • Credit recovery may be delivered by an OSPI approved computer based program

facilitated and sponsored by a Seattle Public Schools staff member. • Credit recovery may be delivered through district created and taught online courses. • Credit recovery may be delivered by an OSPI approved computer based program and

taught by state certified teachers. • Credit recovery may be delivered through district approved assistive instructional

technology under the supervision of trained staff after approval by appropriate budget and departmental review (such as 504 or Special Education).

C. Supporting Student Success

The school will provide the following supports to students to help ensure a successful recovery learning experience:

• The counselor, principal, or other school staff member will advise students in selecting and registering for credit recovery learning options to which the school facilitates access.

• Students registered for online credit recovery will be assigned to a school staff member who will serve as a local advisor. The local advisor will check on student attendance and course progress, communicate with parents about student progress, and submit the course grade to student’s counselor.

• Students registered for online credit recovery will be given access to a computer. The school may offer a dedicated class period during the school day in which students may connect to their online course and to their local advisor.

D. Costs/Fees • Courses offered to students for which the district claims state education funding or that

are included as part of the legally required annual minimum instructional hour offering will be paid for by the district. These are courses that are considered part of a school’s master schedule or are otherwise courses offered by the district or by the individual school. Students/families may be responsible for fees as specified by School Board Policy 3520, Board Procedure 3520BP, and Superintendent Procedure 3520SP.

• Courses offered to students for which the district claims no state education funding and that are not included as part of the legally-required annual minimum instructional hour offering will be paid for by students/families, including any course fees.

E. Student Responsibilities • Adhere to the Basic Rules of Seattle Public Schools and all rules outlined in the

Student Rights & Responsibilities Handbook. • Comply with course participation and completion requirements. • Notify the district if participation in an online course ceases or changes. • Maintain agreed-upon levels and kinds of communication with the local advisor

throughout the term of the course. • Participate in an online course orientation if available.

F. Parent or Guardian Responsibilities

• Ensuring that students are making progress towards credit recovery completion. • Communicating with local advisors or online program team.

G. School Responsibilities

• Inform staff, parents/guardians, and students of the online courses that are available to

them. • Inform staff, parents/guardians, and students of the online course prerequisites,

technology requirements, course outlines, syllabi and possible fees. • Inform staff, parents/guardians and students of how to seek and access technology

resources and technological requirements beyond the school day. • Ensure communication between the student’s local advisor and parent/guardian. The

school will inform students and their parent/guardian of rescheduling options or grade impacts in the event a student withdraws from a credit recovery course prior to completion.

• Seattle Public Schools shall track and designate students enrolled in credit recovery courses in compliance with state guidelines.

H. Awarding Credit • The grade assigned by the teacher of record for the credit recovery course will be added

to the official Seattle Public Schools transcript, but the previous grade will remain on the transcript. Grades and credit will not be added to transcripts until an official transcript/grade score has been received.

• The school counselor will determine how much credit will be awarded, based on instructions in the Counseling Manual.

I. Exception for Out-of-District Credit Recovery

• In some circumstances, Seattle Public Schools may not be able to provide credit

recovery courses that students need in order to graduate. If this happens, students may be permitted to enroll in out-of-district credit recovery and have any credits earned added to their Seattle Public Schools transcripts, based on the following conditions:

o Family must request permission by completing and submitting the Equivalency of Study for Out-of-District Credit Recovery Form to the student’s school administrator prior to taking the course. Note that students taking credit recovery through Seattle Public Schools do not need to fill out this form.

o Principal/school administrator will only approve the request if credit recovery needed is not available through Seattle Public Schools.

o Course must be provided by: OSPI approved online provider; or accredited community college, technical college or university in

Washington State; or approved private school in Washington State; or high school or online school in a school district in Washington State.

o Upon completion of course, student must submit a sealed official transcript to his/her school. The grade earned through the credit recovery course will be

added to the official Seattle Public Schools transcript, but the previous grade will remain on the transcript.

o Student/family is responsible for all costs and fees associated with the course.

Approved: December 2011 Revised: July 2019 Cross Reference: Policy No. 2024

Superintendent Procedure 2024SP Page 1 of 5

Superintendent Procedure 2024SP

Online Learning

Approved by: s/S. Enfield Date: 12/14/11

Dr. Susan Enfield, Interim Superintendent

This procedure outlines the manner in which Seattle Public Schools will allow students to take courses via online learning opportunities. This procedure applies to students taking approved online courses or participating in approved online programs for which the district is counting the student’s time for enrollment reporting purposes or for which the student will be seeking high school credit. Courses for which no credit is sought and no state funding is requested are taken at the discretion of the student and family and are unrelated to Seattle Public Schools. A. Definitions

Online Courses: An “online course” is one in which more than

half of the content is delivered online and more than half of the instruction is delivered online by a teacher from a different location than that of the student.

Online School Program: An “online school program” is delivered by a school district or cooperative of school districts, and provides an online, comprehensive and sequential program of courses or grade-level coursework and instruction in which more than half of the program is delivered online and more than half of the instruction is delivered online by a teacher from a different location than that of the student.

Online Learning Support Team: The “online learning support team” is district/school staff who will provide assistance to the student in accessing courses, understanding coursework and maintaining successful progress in the course.

B. Student Access to Online Courses and Online School Programs

The district will facilitate access to the following types of online learning opportunities, to the extent they are available and meet Seattle Public Schools standards for college-ready courses: 1. Online courses:

a. OSPI-approved online courses created and taught by third-party course providers;

Superintendent Procedure 2024SP Page 2 of 5

b. District-taught online courses created by a third-party contracted provider; and

c. District-created and taught online courses

2. Online school programs: a. District-created and -taught online school programs; b. District-sponsored programs created and taught by third-party course

providers; c. District-sponsored programs created by third-party course providers and

taught by district teachers; and d. Out-of-district online school programs accessed through an interdistrict

transfer

C. Types of Online Courses Available1

1. Credit recovery courses allowing students to make up failed credits needed for graduation;

2. Courses which may already be offered in the student’s school but are inaccessible to the student due to scheduling issues or similar factors;

3. Courses not available at the student’s school that meet four-year college entrance

requirements;

4. Remedial, standard-level or advanced level courses meeting high school graduation requirements; and

5. Remedial, grade level and advanced level coursework for K-8 students

D. Student Eligibility Criteria

The district will facilitate access to online learning courses and programs for students enrolled in grades 6—12; students below grade 6 may be permitted to enroll in online learning courses with the permission of the family, teacher, and school principal. Students taking an online course or participating in a district-created online school program must adhere to the following criteria: 1. Have completed any required prerequisites and provide teacher/counselor

recommendations to confirm that he/she possesses the academic level needed to function effectively in an online learning environment;

2. Comply with existing district policies for registering/enrolling in an online course or district program, including completing the grade-appropriate equivalency course of study form, found in each school’s main office or the counseling office;

1 Remedial courses may be appropriate for some students to bring them up to grade-level skills. The decision to enroll a student in a remedial course should be made jointly between the student’s family, teacher and/or counselor, with approval by the Principal or designee.

Superintendent Procedure 2024SP Page 3 of 5

3. Students interested in attending an online school program in another district must follow dual enrollment protocol prior to entering that program. Only high school students are eligible for dual enrollment. Students who enroll in online school programs in another district are not considered Seattle Public School students for the coursework taken via the online school program; and

4. The online course or program must not conflict with or disrupt the student’s schedule. At the middle school level this includes the first and last class periods of the day; at high school a student may have late arrival or early dismissal, and therefore online work could include those class periods.

E. Supporting Student Success

The district will provide the following support to students to help ensure a successful online learning experience:

1. All online students will receive assistance from the local online learning support

team—assistance may be provided online, rather than in-person;

2. The counselor, principal, or other district staff may advise students in selecting and registering for online learning options to which the district facilitates access;

3. The local advisor or online learning support team will meet regularly with online

students to ensure they are connecting to the online coursework and online teacher and are making satisfactory progress in their online coursework;

4. The district may offer a dedicated class period during the school day in which the

student may connect to an online course and to their local advisor and may offer access to online computers during the school day for outside courses taught or facilitated by the district, or for courses developed and taught/facilitated by the district; it is the student’s/family’s responsibility to identify out-of-school time and computer access for courses that do not fall under this definition.

F. Costs/Fees

1. Courses offered to students for which the district claims state education funding

or that are included as part of the legally-required annual minimum instructional hour offering will be paid for by the school district. Students/families may be responsible for fees as specified by School Board Policy D85.00 and procedure D85.01. These are courses that are considered part of a school’s master schedule or are otherwise courses offered by the district or by the individual school.

2. Courses offered to students for which the district claims no state education funding and that are not included as part of the legally-required annual minimum instructional hour offering will be paid for by students/families, including any course fees.

3. As permitted by financial limitations, courses that are taken at a high school for

credit recovery purposes may be funded by the school.

Superintendent Procedure 2024SP Page 4 of 5

G. Granting of High School Credit for Online Courses 1. Credit for online courses will be granted in the same manner as other course

offerings in the district. This includes granting high school credit for certain courses taken online at the middle school level, per Board Policy D15.00.

2. Currently enrolled students must seek approval and complete the equivalency course of study form prior to enrolling in an online course provided outside of the district. Approval of the equivalency course of study form by the school will identify the terms under which the student may receive credit for the course.

3. For students transferring credit from online courses or programs taken while

enrolled outside of the district, credit will be granted according to the district transfer credit requirements.

4. For eligible courses, if course credit is earned, the course will be recorded on the

transcript using the standardized identifier for online courses provided in the Comprehensive Education Data Research System (CEDARS).

5. No more than eight (8) online learning credits can be obtained for high school

graduation purposes.

6. Grades or credit will not be added to transcripts until an official transcript has been received from the online institution.

H. Information to Students and Parents or Guardians

The district will use a variety of methods to provide information to parents/guardians and students regarding online learning opportunities. Information may be provided through the district Web page, counseling office brochures, newsletters, the student handbook and other appropriate district communication resources. Information provided will include descriptions of online courses or online school programs, enrollment information, potential fees, a description of credit awarded for courses, student eligibility requirements, methods the district will use to support student success and the fact that no more than eight (8) online credits can count towards high school graduation.

I. Student Responsibilities

1. Must seek approval and complete the equivalency course of study form prior to

enrolling in an online course.

2. Adhere to the district’s code of conduct for academic integrity and all rules outlined in the Student Rights & Responsibilities Handbook.

3. Comply with course/program participation and completion requirements.

Superintendent Procedure 2024SP Page 5 of 5

4. Notify the district if participation in an online course/program ceases or changes.

5. Maintain agreed-upon levels and kinds of communication with the local advisor

throughout the term of the online course.

6. Participate in an online course/program orientation if available. J. Parent or Guardian Responsibilities

1. Parents or guardians are responsible for costs/fees as outlined in Section F.

2. Parents or guardians are responsible for providing appropriate technology for

participation in any coursework for which the district does not provide technology.

K. District Responsibilities

1. Inform parents/guardians prior to student enrollment in any online course or

program. 2. Inform staff, parents/guardians and students of the online courses and programs

that are available to them.

3. Inform staff, parents/guardians and students of the online course/online school program prerequisites, technology requirements, course outlines, syllabi and possible fees.

4. Inform staff, parents/guardians and students of how to seek and access

technology resources and technological requirements beyond the school day.

5. Provide online students with an online learning support team.

6. Ensure communication between the student’s local advisor and parent/guardian.

7. Ensure online courses are appropriately identified with CEDARS coding.

8. The district will inform students and their parent/guardian of rescheduling options or grade impacts in the event a student withdraws from an online course or online school program prior to completion.

Approved: December 2011 Revised: Cross Reference: Policy No. 2024; C15.00; D15.00; D85.00; D85.01

Board Policy C16.00 Page 1 of 1

ACCEPTANCE OF

CORRESPONDENCE OR COLLEGE COURSES FOR HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT

Policy C16.00

October 17, 2007

Page 1 of 1

Policy The Seattle School District, in compliance with WAC 392-410-310, will only grant credit, including high school graduation credit, for correspondence or college courses obtained from:

A. Schools that are members of the National University Continuing Education Association or accredited by the Distance Education and Training Council;

B. Community colleges, technical colleges, four-year colleges and universities

(either private or public), and approved private schools high schools in Washington state; and

C. Other schools or institutions, including electronically mediated schools or

programs, which are approved, after evaluation of a particular course offering, by the Superintendent or the Superintendent’s designee.

The superintendent or the superintendent’s designee shall establish procedures that implement this policy and set forth the criteria necessary for granting credit for correspondence or college courses. Adopted: October 17, 2007 Revised: Cross Reference: Related Superintendent Procedure: Previous Policies: Legal References: WAC 392-410-310 Management Resources: